I dunno, I think GH is a much calmer and more rational place than ever before. Are you guys forgetting the bad old days? Up until last year, there was one giant troll on GH that posted over 50,000 angry rants. And 60% of the threads/ posts were about whether or not Filco keyboards made a ping sound when you typed on them. And of course, there was the racism that he spewed. Which was only one part of his invective. IMO, that one dominant troll created and perpetuated an ugly atmosphere of vitriol, anger and resentment. In fact, his pattern of abusive vituperation is still in play at that other keyboard website based in Germany, even though he has been banned over there too.
Currently, even though there are a few trolls in residence here, it's a lot better than it ever was before. A few inside jokes are a small price to pay for a totally improved environment. I don't like missing the inside joke either, but I find it a trifle pique when compared to what we had before. Also I didn't realize how bad it was, until things improved. Back then, I had no idea we could have an enjoyable geekhack.org like we do today.
EDIT: Well, I forgot to say that there is still room for improvement, as you guys have pointed out. But, we should all rejoice in the improvements that have been made so far.
